Photo: Bugatti
Care to guess how much the Bugatti Chiron costs? Approximately $3 million or about 80 times the average transaction price for a light vehicle in the United States of America. The question is, does the Volkswagen Group-owned French manufacturer ask too much for one of the world’s rarest and fastest hypercars?
At first glance, you could say that Bugatti is a bit uncanny. But on the other hand, the level of attention to detail beggars belief. Take the exhaust system’s trim cover as an example; “it takes several days” to 3D-print this component from Inconel 718 if we’re talking about the Chiron Sport. The nickel-chrome alloy is utilized in gas turbines, aircraft turbine blades, as well as transport rocket engines.
Other versions of the Chiron feature trim covers made from titanium, the same material that’s used for the exhaust system per se. In the case of the Chiron Pur Sport, the trim cover is 22 centimeters long, 48 centimeters wide, and 13 centimeters tall while weighing in at 1.85 kilograms including the grille and bracket.
Let that sink in for a minute. Now try to imagine 400-watt lasers printing the titanium component with a wall thickness of 0.4 millimeters at the thinnest point of the trim cover, which fuses together 4,200 layers of metal powder.
“Bugatti is all about French-style luxury and exceptional vehicles, but it’s a brand that stands for innovative technology too,” explained Stephan Winkelmann, president of Bugatti. “In addition to the iconic 16-cylinder engine with 1,500 PS, technical innovation is just as much part of our brand essence – such as our components made of titanium or a special alloy that are produced by 3D printing.”
Bugatti has ventured into 3D printing since 2018, starting with the Chiron Sport and Divo. The one-off La Voiture Noire, the Centodieci that pays tribute to the EB110, as well as the Divo also benefit from this technology.
The Chiron Super Sport 300+, however, is the icing on the cake. It and the Chiron Pur Sport are treated with even more attention to detail by the automaker’s test engineers, who measure the component optically using the 3D process to ensure that it’s perfect.
Other versions of the Chiron feature trim covers made from titanium, the same material that’s used for the exhaust system per se. In the case of the Chiron Pur Sport, the trim cover is 22 centimeters long, 48 centimeters wide, and 13 centimeters tall while weighing in at 1.85 kilograms including the grille and bracket.
Let that sink in for a minute. Now try to imagine 400-watt lasers printing the titanium component with a wall thickness of 0.4 millimeters at the thinnest point of the trim cover, which fuses together 4,200 layers of metal powder.
“Bugatti is all about French-style luxury and exceptional vehicles, but it’s a brand that stands for innovative technology too,” explained Stephan Winkelmann, president of Bugatti. “In addition to the iconic 16-cylinder engine with 1,500 PS, technical innovation is just as much part of our brand essence – such as our components made of titanium or a special alloy that are produced by 3D printing.”
Bugatti has ventured into 3D printing since 2018, starting with the Chiron Sport and Divo. The one-off La Voiture Noire, the Centodieci that pays tribute to the EB110, as well as the Divo also benefit from this technology.
The Chiron Super Sport 300+, however, is the icing on the cake. It and the Chiron Pur Sport are treated with even more attention to detail by the automaker’s test engineers, who measure the component optically using the 3D process to ensure that it’s perfect.
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